No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
by AlsoAleteia
Summary: !HTTYD3 SPOILERS! After a capture mission goes wrong, Hiccup finds himself at the mercy of none other than Grimmel the Grisly himself. Deciding to use Hiccup as a test subject, Grimmel infuses Berk's chief with the same venom he uses to drug his Deathgrippers into obedience. With both their chief and alpha gone, a leaderless Berk finds itself forced to fight its worst enemy yet.
1. Captured

**WARNING: THIS STORY CONTAINS ****HTTYD3 SPOILERS. **

**After a capture mission goes wrong, Hiccup finds himself at the mercy of none other than Grimmel the Grisly himself. Deciding to use Hiccup as a test subject, Grimmel infuses Berk's chief with the same venom he uses to drug his Deathgrippers into obedience. With both their chief and alpha gone, a leaderless Berk finds itself forced to fight its worst enemy yet.**

**Inspired by the awesome drawings by lunarcrown (check them out on Tumblr, as I can't link on ffnet) featuring the phenomenon that's come to be called 'venomcup', I've come up with the following story! The M rating is for whump and graphic violence. **

* * *

**Captured**

"Where's your dragon when you need him?"

Hiccup instantly spun around on the wooden stairs, spotting the figure who'd come up behind them. He was standing on the other side of the chains that'd just surrounded him and his friends, preventing their escape.

"Hm, _chief_?" Grimmel the Grisly taunted. "Must have forgotten all about you."

Agitated, Inferno still ablaze in his right hand, he moved up his visor, balling his fists and giving the villain an angry stare. They'd come here to capture him. But instead, Hiccup had led all of them right into a trap.

"First rule of the hunt," Grimmel cockily added. "Separate the prey from its pack. You –" He pointed at Hiccup specifically. "– just removed yourselves from the equation."

"Why are you doing this?" Hiccup asked, looking down at the hunter from his vantage point on the wooden staircase. In the darkness around him, nothing but Inferno and the lantern Grimmel had with him lighting the fort, he had no idea where exactly the others were. He had to buy them as much time as he could.

"Really?" Grimmel exclaimed, raising his eyebrows. "I didn't think you cared!" He frowned again, his face turning serious. "Well, unlike you, when I was a boy and I came up on a Night Fury, I killed it where it slept."

Hiccup could feel a shiver run down his spine. _Unlike him_. He could've never killed Toothless.

"That simple act of courage made me a hero in my village," Grimmel continued, but Hiccup couldn't keep his attention on his story. Around him, he heard movement, along with low growls. There were dragons in here, and they certainly weren't theirs. "So I decided to kill every last one. Bringing _real_ peace to the people of this world."

Grimmel's sneer didn't escape him as he watched the man's stare intensify. "Until _you_ came along, preaching that dragons are something other than thieves and murderers." He pointed his finger at him again, as if he was trying to give Hiccup a stern talking-to. "That nonsense dies now. Starting with you."

"But you have dragons of your own," he argued. Which currently had them completely surrounded, judging by the sounds that intensified every second.

"These?" Grimmel laughed, looking at him with disdain while beckoning one of his dragons over. Deathgrippers, they were called. "They're dragon killers. Drugged into obedience with their own venom. Not even your precious alpha could control them." Good to know that wasn't an option. If Toothless ever returned from wherever he'd gone off to, that was.

Grimmel fiddled around with something, a tube, filled with a purple liquid, which he pushed back into the bridle secured around the dragon's head. It triggered a faint hissing sound, as if something was released from it. "They serve me, and only me." A smile played around his lips as he straightened himself. "Allow me to demonstrate."

A whistle rang through the fort, and Hiccup knew they had to get out of there right now. "Take cover!"

The words had hardly left his mouth when he heard the Deathgripper right behind him, spitting out acid and completely evaporating the structure he'd been standing on before he jumped out of its way. His suit was fireproof, but if this stuff was anything like Changewing acid, it'd burn right through it.

The floor of the fort instantly caught on fire as he made his way up the stairs, Astrid yelling at the rest of them to split up. Chaos erupted around him, dragons jumping around, spraying their acid wherever they spotted movement. Up seemed to be their only way out, and he ran as fast as he could, but as he looked below him, he found the fire had almost caught up to him already.

He almost tripped as he spotted the Deathgripper that was waiting for him at the top of the stairs. He managed to jump and grab onto one of the chains the stairs hung from just before its acid completely destroyed the structure. He used his momentum to swing to the other side, yelping as he did before all air was pushed out of his lungs due to the force with which he hit the stone wall. He only barely grasped onto one of the wooden beams attached to it.

He frantically looked below him before he pulled himself up, rolling over the edge and getting back up to his feet. He didn't know where everyone was, and in the mixture of shadows and fire it was impossible for him to find out. He spotted his mother, using her staff to make her way further up until she reached the top of the caging.

He checked around him, doing a quick count and hoping, praying to the gods that he counted right and that everyone was there. Most of them were already ahead of him, climbing up the stone wall, the Deathgrippers giving chase.

"Up here!" he heard his mother shout, but he could no longer spot her through the smoke. "Hurry!"

He started to run as every one of his friends disappeared out of sight, making his way up one of the supporting beams, hoping it'd allow him to reach the top. He only narrowly dodged another spout of Deathgripper acid, slipping to a halt just before it obliterated the remaining wood in front of him.

But he had nowhere left to go except forward, as another dragon would soon close in from behind. His mother's voice called for him as he peered down into the depths below him, finding nothing but fire. That he could handle. The drop itself, or the dragons that would devour him if he fell, he couldn't.

His breath hitching, he took a few steps back, seeing no other option than to take a leap of faith. He jumped, only barely avoiding the Deathgripper that jumped up through the flames to grab him. His mom was there, appearing on Cloudjumper, her hand held stretched out towards him.

His hand hit hers, fingertips brushing against each other. But neither of them managed to hold on. And he fell.

His mother's scream echoed through his ears as he flailed, trying to grab onto something but finding nothing but empty air. The Deathgrippers ignored him, jumping up past him and clawing at the top of the structure as his back was lucky enough to hit what little of the wooden upper floor still remained, the impact making him groan loudly. The Deathgrippers' efforts sent a shower of debris coming his way however, and he had no time to overthink his situation as he scrambled to his feet, trying to see where he could flee to. But he found nothing but flames around him. _If only Toothless had been here._

Seeing no other way to avoid the killer dragons above him however, his mom having had to retreat, he made his way through the flames as well as his suit let him. Above him, through the growls of the struggling Deathgrippers, he heard another sound. The loud, ear-deafening roar of a Crimson Goregutter.

Before he properly realised what was happening, the stone walls above him collapsed, sending the dragons downward along with a torrent of debris. He managed to avoid the first bricks, but it soon obliterated the flooring he was standing on, making him slip as he desperately tried to grab onto the wall, but failed. His wings would immediately be torn to shreds if he opened them and he had no other options than to led himself fall, praying to the gods that the drop wouldn't kill him and that his suit could withhold the fire that was waiting for him afterwards.

But he didn't get a chance to. Two claws closed around his waist from in front of him, sending him straight through what little there was left of the fort's wall. He landed in a flurry of stone and wood, the Deathgripper and him rolling to a stop as the dragon pinned him down. It extended its tusks, moving its stinger dangerously close to his face as it growled. This was it.

He thought he heard the faint sound of his name in the distance – Astrid, perhaps? – as the stinger lowered itself to his face. The Deathgripper drooled on him, its yellow eyes staring deep into his own. No amount of training could help them. Grimmel had completely driven them mad.

"Stop," he heard the demon say. He looked to his right, finding the man pointing at him, but looking at the sky. He couldn't look behind him, but he had quite a good sense of who Grimmel was talking to.

"If you get any closer, he dies," Grimmel smiled.

Hiccup closed his eyes, knowing there was no other option than for him to be left behind. He'd led them straight into a trap. And now, he was paying the price.

Peering through the slits of his helmet, he watched Grimmel smile, nodding contently as he started to make his way over to him. The flames of his burning fortress spookily lit his face as he knelt down above him, grinning. "So much for saving their chief."

"You –" he started, before he saw Grimmel lift his hand, something blunt held in it. Instinctively, he tried to raise his hands to his face, but the Deathgripper was still holding him down. Watching in fear as Grimmel moved back his arm, he yelled once more before something hard hit the side of his face, turning everything completely black.

* * *

Everything hurt. Hiccup's insides, his outsides, but most importantly his head. It was pounding so loudly it awoke him from his slumber, making him struggle to open his eyes while he wondered where he was and why he wasn't in his bed.

He found himself in a dark room. The only source of light was a flickering lantern in the far corner, allowing him to see the stone wall and the steel bars of his cell. The memories of what had happened instantly came back to him. He'd led his friends straight into an ambush. And had been captured because of it, leaving Berk without its leader, without its chief. In their most trying times.

Cursing at himself for his stupidity, he got up to his feet, his prosthetic sounding too loud for his ears as it hit the rock floor. Only now did he notice how his hands were chained to the wall behind him, preventing him for getting further than a meter away from it. His body felt beaten and bruised, but he had to try to get away nevertheless.

Desperately, he tugged and he pulled, hoping either the chains or the wall would give. But every time he leapt, he was pulled back again by his own force, making him recoil against the wall. He tried until his wrists could no longer take it, the extent to which his head was spinning making him heave.

But he couldn't give up. Sure, knowing the gang, they'd try to come and rescue him. But he couldn't sit back and wait for that to happen. He had to get out of here himself.

His hair sticking to his forehead due to the amount of physical exertion he was putting himself through, his breath heavy, he tried to loosen himself again. But there was no way he could break the chains like this. He needed his sword, or an axe, or anything sharp enough to cut it. But he soon found that Inferno had been taken for him, the hilt that was usually strapped to his right pant leg, gone. And so was his helmet.

Angry at himself and frustrated, he tried once more, yelling loudly as he did before falling to his knees, panting as he tried to calm himself down, gathering his strength for another attempt.

"This isn't getting you anywhere," a voice told him what he was about to think to himself.

He looked up, finding Grimmel looking at him from behind the bars. He had a lantern in his hand which threw shadows over his face, making his grin seem even more devious.

"Let me go," he bit, looking up at the man.

Grimmel laughed, disdain clearly audible in his voice. "I don't think that's going to happen, Hiccup."

His captor opened the door of the cell, walking in with lengthy, slow steps. It hadn't occurred to Hiccup so far how un-Viking-like Grimmel looked. He was tall and slender, the exact opposite of the bulky dragon hunters he'd become used to throughout the years. This villain had the same posture as he did. But he was nothing like him.

He showed his teeth as Grimmel crouched down in front of him, putting the lantern on the floor. The man made sure to not crouch all the way down to his eyelevel, forcing him to look up as he gave Grimmel the kind of stare he reserved for people who treated dragons the way he did.

"I thought you wanted to kill me," he bit.

"Oh, believe me, Hiccup, there's nothing I'd rather do," Grimmel reassured him, staring back at him with a pair of ice cold eyes. "But," he resumed, fiddling around with something Hiccup couldn't quite see. "I figured that capturing you could have its advantages."

"Such as?" he asked, defiantly returning Grimmel's gaze.

"Well, you know where the people of Berk are," Grimmel elaborated. "And perhaps, your precious Night Fury too. So I'll leave it up to you which of those you tell me about first."

"Neither."

"Now, Hiccup, that seems a bit drastic, doesn't it?" the villain smiled, shaking his head. "When we could also just solve this in a more civilized manner. After all, it's only a matter of time until my armada finds the Berkians. I am simply offering you the chance to put them out of their misery sooner."

At least he now knew Grimmel hadn't sailing west hadn't been a lucky guess. "I'm sure Berk's warriors will gladly put _you_ out of your misery as soon as you even dare to come close to them," he threatened. If anything, Astrid would gladly put Grimmel's head on a spike.

"What about the Night Fury, then? Care to give him up?"

He looked away, refusing to let Grimmel onto the fact that he didn't know where Toothless was. Which, right now, was probably for the best. Then he couldn't be dragged into the mess he'd made either.

A rough hand landed on his chin, pinching his cheek and twisting his neck, forcing him to look up at his captor. "Tell me, Hiccup. I will get him, with or without your help."

"Over my dead body," he bit, adding power to his words by spitting after it, a nice clot of Haddock saliva landing straight in Grimmel's face.

The man groaned, straightening himself as he wiped his long face with the back of his hand, the disgust visible on his face. "Little brat."

Hiccup's lips curled up into a smile as Grimmel turned around, resuming his fumbling with whatever it was he was holding. "Do you remember what I told you earlier, Hiccup?" the villain asked. "About my dragons?"

"Of course I do." How could he forget something like that? "You drug them into obedience with their own venom."

"Indeed. But what I forgot to tell you, is that it also works on other dragon species."

Hiccup couldn't see Grimmel's face as he spoke, but the tone of his voice was enough to tell him that he was smiling deviously.

"But there's something I've been wondering about…" he resumed.

"And what would that be?"

Grimmel turned around, holding his lantern up and revealing what he was holding. It looked like a small belt. "Whether it also works on humans." Hiccup's eyes turned bigger as he watched the tall man walk up to him. "And you seem like the perfect test subject."

He tried to scramble to his feet, but the chains were holding him back. He trashed and kicked as Grimmel stepped over them, pressing him down onto his knees as he lowered himself behind him. He couldn't let this happen. But there was no way he could get away.

He felt Grimmel reach around his neck. He tried to headbutt him, to hide his neck, to which Grimmel reacted by burying his hand in his hair, tugging on it so hard it fixed his head in place. He screamed in pain as he felt leather envelop his neck, his captor silencing him by tightening it too fast, making him feel like he'd choke right then and there.

He fell forward as far as his chains allowed him to when Grimmel released him, gasping for air before throwing himself backwards, hoping the length of the chains would allow him to claw the collar from his neck. But as he did so, he hit Grimmel's chest, and the man instantly threw one of his long arms around him, keeping his arms and upper body in place.

"Well then, Hiccup," Grimmel whispered from behind him, his voice low. Something purple moved into his field of view, Grimmel waving the same kind of tube around he'd seen him reattach to the Deathgripper before. The liquid almost sparkled in the faint light of the cell. "I have to admit that I think it's very noble of you to have saved all those dragons over the past years." His voice was absolutely dripping with sarcasm. "But you're wrong. And I can't allow those _good deeds_ to go unpunished."

He screamed and trashed, struggling as much as he could, but Grimmel was stronger. He heard a hissing sound, followed by the piercing sensation of a needle, burying itself into his neck. His veins felt as if they were being filled with solid ice, his muscles going limp as he just stared in front of him, the world slowly darkening. His head spun as the ice reached his toes, every sense of reality escaping him. The only thing he still registered was how his body hit the rock floor as Grimmel released him. Then everything was gone.

**A/N: To be continued... For news on updates, you can find me on Tumblr at aleteia-ff! **


	2. Poisoned

**A/N: Please allow me to start by saying that I'm absolutely overwhelmed by the response the first chapter got! It made writing this chapter even better! Please also make sure to check out the venomcup tag on Tumblr, as a lot of incredible art related to this AU is still being made and posted! **

**Warning: This chapter contains some gore. **

**Poisoned**

Astrid couldn't believe it. She still couldn't as they regrouped on New Berk, all of them silent. Unlike all those other missions they'd gone on, Toothless didn't land with them. And neither did Hiccup.

They were gone. Both of them. Toothless captivated, Hiccup captured. At least on most occasions Hiccup had gotten separated from the rest of them, he'd had Toothless with him. Or close to him. But this time around, he was truly alone.

She couldn't get the image out of her head. Grimmel's fortress, burning, the flames enveloping them and all of them scrambling to make their way up. And Hiccup had been last, as he always was, making sure everyone was okay before they left the scene. But this time, he'd been too far behind.

All the way back to New Berk, she hadn't been able to shake the visions from her mind. And now, as she was getting off Stormfly, only absent-mindedly thanking the dragon for taking such good care of her once again, she still couldn't. She herself had found her way to safety quite quickly, keeping an eye out for everyone together with Valka. She'd watched as Hiccup's mother dove down to catch him. And she'd seen how they'd just barely missed each other, her boyfriend plummeting down, disappearing in the flames and smoke.

She thought she'd lost him right then, the clawing Deathgrippers preventing her from diving back in after him. And they'd been too late to call off the Crimson Goregutter that completely obliterated the fortress, sealing Hiccup's fate. Or so she'd thought.

She'd been forced to take off as the tower beneath them disappeared, their team flying around and watching as Grimmel ran out of the collapsing structure. And right after that, the sound of stone being obliterated had followed as one of the Deathgrippers burst out of the structure, Hiccup held in its claws.

She'd screamed his name as the pair came to a rolling stop, the Deathgripper on top of him, preparing himself to kill the man she loved. She'd nudged Stormfly down, willing to do whatever it took to free him. He hadn't been dead yet, after all. She'd seen him move, seen him struggle.

But Grimmel had been quick to put an end to it. One step closer, and Hiccup would die. And all of them had known right then, without even communicating, that they had no other choice but to abandon him. But even though there was nothing they could've done – even a tiny spark from one of their dragons would have made Grimmel kill him – she couldn't shake her incredible sense of guilt. Hiccup would've never let this happen to her.

"Ah, you're back!" Gobber exclaimed, the blacksmith making his way to their group, interrupting her thoughts. "Did you capture the old –"

They looked at him in silence as his eyes went over each one of them, slowly growing bigger as they did. She could see him count inside his head. "Where's Hiccup?"

"Captured," she told him.

"What? How? When?" Gobber stammered, looking at her for answers.

"It was a trap. And we fell straight in it." She gestured to the people around her. "We got out, but –"

"Hiccup didn't," Valka completed, staring off into the distance. Astrid eyed her with concern. If the guilt was already wrecking her, how did she feel?

There was another silence then, all of them lost for words. "I should have had him," Hiccup's mother eventually continued, still not looking at the group. "If I'd just been faster, he would've been here with us."

"It's not your fault, Valka," Eret softly countered. "What happened down there, that's on all of us."

"I told you guys we should train harder," she bit. She instantly felt everyone's eyes on her, but she didn't care.

"Astrid…" Fishlegs started.

"It's true," she argued, balling her fists. "And you guys know it too. If we were better at working together, Hiccup wouldn't have to look after us all the time. And he wouldn't have been left behind."

Silence surrounded them then, everyone looking at their feet or at their dragons. They knew she was right as well as she did. They should've been a team. But they never really were. Just a bunch of scrambling young adults with dragons.

"Then it's on all of us to fix it, too," Tuffnut finally said. As the group looked at him in surprise, he added: "Hey, I can be sensible too."

"Occasionally," Ruffnut nodded.

"And exactly how do you propose we fix it, Tuff?" Snotlout asked, looking agitated. "Hiccup is gone. Our leader, our chief. And, in case you've forgotten, no one seems to have any clue where Toothless is either. Somehow, in no more than two days, we managed to lose our chief and our alpha dragon." He scoffed. "We should've never left Berk."

"Can't change that anymore, Snot," Fishlegs pointed out. "I'm sure Hiccup didn't intend for things to work out this way. He just tried to do his best for all of us."

"And being dramatic about it isn't going to help either," Gobber added.

"So what's next, General?" Eret asked after another brief silence.

That question surprised her more than it should have. She hadn't even considered yet that with Hiccup gone, she would be the one calling the shots. She looked around, at their exhausted dragons and similar dragon riders. As much as she'd like to mount a rescue mission right now, she couldn't imagine that ever going down well with everyone in this shape.

"I don't know, I –" She shook her head. "Going back right now will just end in disaster…" But they needed to save him. She couldn't live with the thought of Hiccup being captured for any longer than he had to.

She bit her lower lip. What would Hiccup do? She'd watched him overthink his plans so many times back on Dragon's Edge, when they were fighting Viggo, Krogan or Johann. Grimmel was just another enemy to add to that list. And she had to think how Hiccup had in those times.

"Grimmel won't kill him," she deduced. "If he wanted to, he would've done so in front of our eyes. Made us watch him die. So he must've thought Hiccup was useful enough to capture." That thought was enough to send a shiver down her spine. "Because he knows the most out of all of us. He knows where we are, and if there's anyone with a clue as to where Toothless could be, it's him."

"Doesn't that mean Grimmel will try to get that out of him, though?" Fishlegs asked, frowning. "Through torture, or…"

She closed her eyes. She didn't want to think about that. "I'm afraid so. But if there's anyone strong enough to resist, it's Hiccup." She just didn't know for how long.

There were some silent nods amongst their crew.

"Get some rest now," she decided. "Tomorrow, we track them down and free Hiccup."

Silently, they all returned to their own tents. A few words were spoken, but she didn't really pay attention to them, slouching back to her tent as Stormfly concernedly trailed behind her. Not even bothering to change out of her armour, she slipped underneath the covers. But as much as she wanted to make sure she would be at her best the next day, sleep wouldn't come to her. Because she couldn't get Hiccup out of her head.

Where was he? _How _was he? Had he woken up yet after Grimmel had knocked him out, or had the hit been so hard he would be out for at least the next day or so? Had he been tortured, hurt, humiliated? Or worse? Had she disappointed him, did he feel like she had abandoned him?

She quickly discarded that last thought. Knowing Hiccup, he likely felt _he _had been the one to let _them _down. But nothing could be further from the truth. He'd never truly let them down. Nor her. And he still hadn't. Sure, it'd been a trap, but none of them had been clever enough to see that either. And no matter the circumstances, they should've looked after him. He wasn't just their leader, or their chief. He was their friend. And for her, he was the man she loved more than anyone else.

They'd failed him. She'd failed him. And that intense sense of guilt continued to consume her until morning finally came.

* * *

Hiccup was there. Sort of, kind of. He wasn't quite, floating around between darkness and something purple. There was no shape to it, but it just danced in front of his eyes until it eventually settled down, encasing his vision like a fog. A haze. And it felt like it took him hours to get through that. It had settled into his brain, a similarly frigid sensation making his whole body tingle. But slowly, his senses came back to him, allowing him to feel how he was spread out on the cell's floor, his cheek pressed against the cold stone. He felt sweaty all over and as soon as he managed to open his eyes, attempting to sit back up, his stomach turned. He vomited, and when he saw the faint hint of purple in the contents of his stomach, it hit him.

He instantly reached for his neck, his hands closing around the leather enveloping it, looking for the buckle, or the vial of Deathgripper venom.

"Stop," an icy voice pierced through the cell. Hiccup did, but not because he had wanted to. But because, no matter how hard he tried, his muscles refused to move.

"Interesting," Grimmel hummed, walking towards him from the opposite corner of the cell. Hiccup glared up at him as Grimmel crouched down in front of him, looking into his eyes. "Put your hands back down."

The chains still bound around his wrists rattled as he did, slowly releasing the collar and putting his hands in his lap. Which was the opposite of what he _should have done_.

"What are you doing to me?" he hissed.

"I'm simply running some tests, Hiccup," Grimmel murmured as he straightened himself. "And I must say, the results look very promising so far." He paused for a second, looking down at him. "Stand up."

Powerless to do something about it, he listened to the sound of his own prosthetic as he put it down on the floor, raising himself as well as he could with his hands still bound. Why was he moving along so easily, without having any say in it? His mind seemed to be working just fine, apart from the haziness, but his body almost felt like it wasn't… Like it wasn't _his_.

Grimmel got something out of his pocket, putting it in Hiccup's field of view. A key. "I am going to release you," he stated. "And you will just keep standing like you are now."

Like Hel he would. He'd gladly show Grimmel just how wrong he was to underestimate him.

He listened as Grimmel took his wrists one after another, a metallic sound and an immediate relief around his wrists being the only signs he had been released. Because no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move. He tried to lift his hands, to gnarl the collar from his neck or to knock Grimmel out. But his arms stayed as they were. And so did his legs. He had every opportunity to run away. But he couldn't. His body wouldn't.

Trying not to panic as he slowly started to realize what that could mean, he just watched Grimmel as the man came back around, trying his best to make it seem like he was obliging voluntarily. He stared back into the man's icy blue eyes, glaring. But Grimmel wasn't impressed. Instead, a smile appeared on his face.

"What is it, Hiccup? If I were you, I at least would have tried to make a run for it. I can't imagine you're really enjoying my company, after all," the grey-haired villain taunted. "Or are you, perhaps, unable to do so?"

He didn't answer, but that only seemed to please Grimmel more, his unsettling smile widening. "Tell me, Hiccup. Are you, or are you not, able to move?"

"I'm not." The words left his mouth, but they weren't truly his. His voice sounded off, slower. Sedated.

"Oh, this really is remarkable," Grimmel almost purred. "Even the things you say, mine to command. Then again, I suppose speech is also just a basic bodily function. But your mind is still in there, isn't it? Judging by the way you're glaring back at me."

He took a deep breath, refusing to let Grimmel's words get to him. He couldn't let him know. He couldn't let him see that deep inside, he was starting to panic. If Grimmel could make him do these simple things, what _else _could he be made to do? How could he escape from this, if his body refused to do something as simple as removing the collar from his neck?

"Focus on it for a bit, will you," Grimmel continued, not letting his eyes go. "The venom spreading through your body. Tell me what it feels like."

"It's like ice," he instantly responded, his voice tired and monotone. _Hiccup, you muttonhead, don't answer that!_ "I feel cold all over, and even though I'm sure I should still be covered in bruises, I don't feel them. My mind is foggy, my senses dampened. My tongue feels heavy in my mouth." He closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on the only sensitive spot on his body, as he was asked. His neck. "I can almost feel it being pumped into me. Poisoning me."

"Fascinating," Grimmel noted. "But don't worry, Hiccup, it hasn't killed any of the dragons yet. So I highly doubt it will kill you." Gods, if his options were to either become Grimmel's slave or to die, he was pretty sure which one he preferred. "If anything, it'll only become less easy for you to resist as your system becomes accustomed to the venom, stops fighting it. But seeing how you're already so obedient right now…" The taller man's lips curled up into a smile. "I don't know what else I could wish for."

He wanted to open his mouth, but Grimmel held up a finger. "No, Hiccup, let me finish talking." And his voice was lost just like that.

"Now, of course, if your mind hasn't completely turned to mush yet, you probably still remember why I decided to keep you here instead of simply relieving the Archipelago of your agonizing presence and ideals," Grimmel started, walking around the cell and intertwining the long fingers of both of his slender hands. "You know more than I do, and it would be a waste not to use this opportunity to _retrieve_ that information. And, having you like this, there's no doubt in my mind you will _gladly_ answer any question I ask." The villain's gaze settled back on him. "For instance, dear Hiccup, what would your most agonizing memory be? Out of all the things you blame yourself for, what pains you the most?"

"My dad getting killed by Toothless, sacrificing himself to save me." The kind of thing you'd never tell your enemy.

"Leaving you to become chief at the measly age of twenty. Yes, I've heard the story. The great Stoick the Vast, dying to save his boy from being killed by the dragon he swore to have trained." Grimmel scoffed. "Yet you kept fighting for the beasts. Why?"

"It's what he would have wanted too."

"And you feel like you're doing fine, as Berk's new chief?" One of the corners of Grimmel's mouth pulled up. "Only answer yes or no."

"No."

"And why not?"

"I'm letting them down." Especially right now.

"Oh, Hiccup, don't we all let people down in our lives?" Grimmel cooed. "Your ill-founded heroism had to run its course one day or another. Don't you agree?"

"I'm no hero." He had never thought himself one.

"Well, at least that's something we see eye to eye on," Grimmel smiled. "Your honesty is greatly appreciated, Hiccup. Although I'm not sure the feeling is mutual," he continued to tease. Hiccup tried to glare back as well as he could, but even that was starting to give him trouble. There was a faint purple glow surrounding his vision, straining his eyes as he couldn't seem to blink it away.

"But, as efficient as it would be to just ask you to give up the location of the Berkians right now, we'll have time enough for that later. For now, I would very much like to perform one more… _experiment_."

"You can shove that experiment –" he started, his control over his voice recovering.

"Don't get snappy," Grimmel warned him before he walked to the exit of the cell, and he shut up just like that. Gods, if only he could give Grimmel a piece of his mind, if he could tell him that there was no way Berk would let him get away with this. But his lips wouldn't form the words, and his throat wouldn't produce the sounds. "Follow me," was the command his body obliged to instead.

Grimmel led him out of his cell, freedom within his grasp, but his hands unable to reach for it. It made him feel claustrophobic, the walls of the fortress suddenly seeming a lot closer than they were before. A harrowing feeling of being trapped welled up inside him, which had nothing to do with his surroundings. He tried to force himself to do a few little things as he walked along, such as scratching his nose. But his movements weren't his. His body wasn't.

He tried to steel himself as well as he could. Panicking wasn't going to help him at all. Even though it would be quite a logical reaction for someone who seemed to be forced to obey their enemy's every command. But he couldn't resign himself to that. There had to be a way to resist. And surely, there had be some things Grimmel could never make him do, right? Just like he'd freed Toothless from the Bewilderbeast's control, there had to be a way he could free himself. He just had to find it.

They appeared to be in a different structure than the one in which Grimmel had ambushed them before, which he figured made sense, given that the Crimson Goregutter had obliterated everything the fire hadn't. He found himself in a big, circular room, the walls made out of the same kind of stone as his cell. There wasn't much to it; there was a big table in the middle, a few stools and what seemed to be Grimmel's supplies. Judging by the iron caging above him and the cells on the other side of the room, it was a small abandoned prison, or kill ring.

There were some lanterns in the corners to make up for the little light the stars provided them with, and judging by the sounds the moving shapes around him made, Grimmel's Deathgrippers were here too. As he spotted the purple vials on the dragon's heads, he dejectedly noted that he now had a lot more in common with them than before.

Grimmel leant back against the table, taking him in. "You see, Hiccup, most people would likely make you embarrass yourself. Humiliate you to your very core, until you break. But why would I need to do that, if you're already so obedient?" A devious smile lingered on his lips. "If anything, it gives me more joy to know that you're actually alive in there, fully experiencing and dreading every second. So I don't think breaking you is preferable."

"But, of course there are some necessities we have to cover. Such as preparing my dragons' food," he continued, gesturing to the Deathgrippers. "I would very much like you to take care of that."

Out of all things Grimmel could do to him, he wanted to make him go fishing? That didn't make any sense…

He followed as Grimmel beckoned him over, leading him to the other side of the room, towards one of the cells. He froze – voluntarily, this time – as he laid eyes on what was inside of it. The words Grimmel had spoken to him earlier came back to him. _These? They're dragon killers_.

"Can you tell me what dragon species that is, Hiccup?" Grimmel asked with a smile as he casually leant against the cell's steel bars.

He looked at the blue dragon inside of it, its big yellow eyes staring at him in despair. "That's a Scuttleclaw."

"Peaceful dragons, if I'm not mistaken?"

"Yes."

"Perfect," the villain smiled as he aimed his crossbow through the bars, at the dragon. He nodded at Hiccup. "Stay still."

The Scuttleclaw's eyes shot from the villain to Hiccup, its fear clearly reflected in them. But there was nothing he could do.

He watched as the Scuttleclaw was hit by a bolt, its eyes lazily closing as it slumped to the ground, completely helpless. Even through his numbness, he could feel his heart ache.

"Did you kill it?" he asked with considerable difficulty.

"No, it is simply asleep," Grimmel 'reassured' him. "Unaltered Deathgripper venom functions as a powerful sedative."

"Why?"

"Because there's no fun in killing a dragon with a single shot, Hiccup," the man explained as he studied the sleeping Scuttleclaw. "It makes the game too easy, the distance between hunter and prey too big. I prefer a more… intimate approach." He turned back around to face him. "Hold out your hand, boy."

He offered his left hand, his palm opened towards Grimmel. Something shimmering was placed in it, its reflection slightly spooky in the flickering flames that lit the dungeon. It was a dagger.

"This is my most prized possession," Grimmel elaborated as Hiccup turned it around in his hand. The blade was undoubtedly sharp, its black hilt feeling comfortable in his hand. But it only took him a second to recognize the texture of the hilt's finish.

"Night Fury skin," he mumbled as his eyes went back up to Grimmel. This was the man who'd killed every Night Fury he'd come across. The one who'd made sure Toothless had no family. Who'd made him, to both of their knowledge, the last of his kind.

That anger was enough for him to lash out, realizing that he hadn't specifically been told not to slit the villain's throat. But as he did, he saw something flash in Grimmel's eyes before his mouth formed the word he dreaded most. "Stop."

Like that, his arm paused, the blade nearly at Grimmel's neck. And it wouldn't go further.

"You don't get to kill me, Hiccup," the tall man informed him as he fumbled around with the door to the Scuttleclaw's cell, slowly opening it. "But instead, I'd like you to do something else with that dagger."

He didn't ask. He just stared back at him, hoping Grimmel would burst into flames.

"The dragon's so heavily sedated, it won't wake up, no matter what you do," Grimmel elaborated as he walked back up to him. He took Hiccup's left arm, moving it back down before gripping his chin, forcing him to look into his frigid eyes. "So let's see how far you can go." He paused, his stare intensifying. "Carve out the dragon's heart and bring it to me."

Hiccup's eyes went from the man to the dagger in his hand, then finally to the sedated Scuttleclaw on the floor. Back on Berk, the dragon was considered to be cuter than most species, with enough charm to make most Vikings coo. It looked asleep, at peace. And yet, there was nothing he could do to prevent himself from walking over to it.

"You can't let me do this," he murmured, struggling to find his voice as he slumped to his knees, positioning himself only a few feet away from the dragon.

"And yet you are," Grimmel hummed.

He watched in agony as he twirled Grimmel's dagger around in his hand, strengthening his grip on it. The blue dragon was breathing softly, its white belly fully exposed. He was familiar enough with its anatomy – dissecting deceased dragons was no uncommon practice on Berk – to know exactly where he'd find what he'd been ordered to retrieve. And from behind his eyes, the purple glow seemingly intensifying, he watched, screamed inside his own head, as he carefully lifted the dagger, taking it in both of his hands.

The words he'd uttered so many years ago echoed through his mind. _I'm going to kill you, dragon. I'm going to cut out your heart and take it to my father_. _I__ am__ a Viking. I am a Viking!_

He hadn't been able to kill Toothless then. And from that point onwards, he'd done everything in his power, vowed to never to hurt a dragon unless there was no other way. And even then, he'd minimize the damage as best as he could.

But all it took for him to break that vow were a few drops of purple liquid, seeping into his veins, poisoning his body and mind. He tried to resist, to take back control of himself, but no matter how much he searched, he couldn't find anything to hold onto. His muscles weren't his. And neither were his eyes, as even closing them seemed to be out of his control. Instead, he was forced to watch as the dagger came down in one swift movement, piercing the Scuttleclaw's white belly.

A drop of red blood blended with the white scales as Grimmel's dagger pierced them with ease. And then another one. And another. Countless drops of blood spilled onto the dragon's skin before trickling down onto the floor as the dagger buried itself into the Scuttleclaw's flesh. But it wasn't the dagger that was doing that. It was him.

He watched in agony as he made a small incision, dragging the dagger down, drawing even more blood in the process. His body started quivering, his mind desperately banging on the walls of his existence as it tried to break the barrier the venom had created between his body and his soul. But his hands stayed steady as they worked, skilfully creating the opening that'd lead him to the dragon's heart.

_Get a hold of yourself, you idiot_, he scolded himself, but it didn't have any effect, as he now found himself staring at the Scuttleclaw's big, beating heart. It was still alive. It wasn't dead yet, he hadn't killed it, they could still repair the wound he created. He wouldn't kill a dragon, he couldn't, not even Grimmel could make him do this, it wasn't him, he –

And then in one swift movement, he did. He cut the dragon's heart loose from the rest of its body, blood pouring out of its disconnected veins. Its belly rose and fell a few more times, before stopping all together. _He'd killed a dragon. _

With that realization, his consciousness managed to find his voice, releasing the most agonizing scream he'd ever heard from his throat as he dropped the dagger. It pierced his ears, echoed through his mind, but it was the only thing he could do as he watched his blood-red hands retreat, the dragon's heavy, still-beating heart held in them.

He hunched over, his body shaking as the kind of sorrow he hadn't felt since his father died took control of him. He cried out once more, almost ripping his throat apart as he watched the dragon's blood drip off his hands. Clear, purple-tinted droplets eventually joined them, an uncontrollable stream of tears dripping down his cheeks and onto his hands. He forced himself to look back at the dragon in front of him, its body gone limp, its eyes forever closed. _I did this_.

But despite his sorrow, despite the agony that was wrecking every part of his body, he found himself getting up to his feet, turning back around towards the villain. And in Grimmel's eyes, in the sly smile the man was currently taking him in with, he found the same knowledge that was starting to dawn on him. If Grimmel could make him do _this_, without any hesitation or resistance, then he could make him do anything.

Purple, glowing tears still streaming down his face, he held the Scuttleclaw's heart up to his captor. His body shuddered as he felt it beat in his hands once more. As Grimmel took a long stride towards him, clearly enjoying the show, he realized the Dragon Riders coming in to save him might be his only shot at getting out of this. But Grimmel knew that too. And he'd use that. Astrid, his mother and the others had no idea what was waiting for them. Who was waiting for them.

The villain smiled as he took the dragon heart from his hands, casually tossing it towards one of the Deathgrippers, who instantly devoured it whole. "Good boy. Now stay still."

"You're a monster," he bit, his voice broken.

The villain took one of his bloodied wrists, lifting it to Hiccup's face, dragging three of his red fingers over his cheek. They felt slick and sticky on his skin, marking him with the blood he'd shed himself.

Grimmel leant forward, his icy eyes staring deep into his own. "And now, so are you."


End file.
